Death Perception
by Aeondragon
Summary: 12 Years ago, a blonde boy with mysterious eyes awoke in a hospital in the land of Snow, where he had laid in a coma for the previous six years. One of the greatest assassins, he returns now, finding the princess and a team of Konoha ninja. AU
1. Chapter 1

**I'm not sure why I chose to write this story next. It was just the first one to pop out at me. I just wanted to see the reaction to another story.**

**The Mystic Eyes of Death Perception are taken from TYPE-MOON's works, Tsukihime and Kara no Kyoukai. They've been altered slightly, but they are not my creation.**

**Kuji Kanesada was the name of Shiki (from Kara no Kyoukai) Ryougi's katana. Nanatsu-Yoru was believed to be the name of Shiki (from Tsukihime) Tohno's knife (It wasn't, but I decided to keep the name anyway). I've decided to give them some properties to make them more badass. Kanesada has assimilated some of Shiki's (Naruto's) own abilities. The wounds caused by it are almost impossible to heal, and the weapon itself is indestructible. Nanatsu is especially useful for cutting things that are non-physical (such as chakra).**

**I'm not sure why I decided to write this as a first person story, but I did. I did switch to his sister's point of view for a bit, and I probably will again in the future. So far, it's looking like it will be a Shiki (Naruto) x Kasumi. Partially so I can enjoy writing their reactions when they learn Shiki's identity in two or three chapters. I'm sorry if you don't like that idea, but I think it will be highly entertaining.**

**I'm exaggerating the powers of Naruto's eyes in order to make him a serious threat. Essentially, all he has to do is cut along a line to kill it, as opposed to having to cut the entire line to do so. He has had enough practice that he can do things like collapse a small part of a mountain, or rip a fissure through the ground with a single cut.**

**Naruto will be referred to as Shiki, until his identity is revealed. I'm not sure if Yukigakure was a real village, but it is one in this story. I'm hoping I didn't screw up the timeline too much.**

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><p>Chapter 1<p>

Kasumi Namikaze glanced around, rather irritated. This stupid princess was a bitch. This mission was almost as bad as that Wave one. She didn't see the girl anywhere, so guessed that she must be in this cave. Sure enough, the annoying actress was here. She exchanged a few words with the woman, before picking her up and carrying her. Upon hearing a strange sound, she turned to see a huge metal contraption, called a train by Koyuki, rushing towards her. She ran forward, but the train was too fast. She tapped into the Kyuubi's power, channeling the extremely potent chakra to her legs and racing out of the cave.

She could only watch in horror as the force of samurai, led by that Sandayu guy, was destroyed by the rain of kunai that exploded from the metal train. Even as that happened though, she suddenly felt a fear that was not hers. Was that the fox? She turned and saw that the train had suddenly split in two. It was falling apart now. How? What on earth could do something like this? That train was made of metal!

Then, she saw HIM for the first time. He didn't look that much older than her. He had spiky blonde hair, much like her father's, and strange glowing eyes that were blue tinged with magenta in the middle. He held a beautiful katana in both hands. The eyes were glowing as he slashed the sword again, this time causing the ground beneath the train to collapse, trapping it.

She was amazed to see the ninja in the train run away as best they could, though those non-ninja weren't as lucky. Every strike he made was unnaturally fatal, carving his target into pieces. If he stabbed an enemy, they died, no matter where they were cut. Sometimes, he would cut them into multiple pieces with a single strike.

There was a part of her that was always aroused by destruction, and she couldn't help a blush rising to her cheeks as she watched him slaughter the soldiers. Of course, there was another part of her that was sickened by the violence and nearly hurled. She pulled out a kunai and could only watch, trembling, as the man moved closer.

* * *

><p>As always, Kanesada sank deeply into the target. I watched with slight boredom as the train was cut in half, the damage traveling along the line I cut. It was too bad that I had only just heard of the attack, otherwise I might have been able to save the idiots charging the train. Stupid they may be, but they were still Snow's people. I wasn't a citizen of the country, but I did have a great deal of respect for it, after housing me for eight years. As I promised Sosetsu all those years ago, I would protect the princess. I drove the blade into the ground, 'killing' the natural forces that kept a segment of the mountain from caving in. The train fell into the resulting cavern, killing over a dozen men.<p>

I barely noticed as I carved my way through the non-ninja that had managed to jump aside. Of course, Doto and his men had fled at their first opportunity. Yukigakure was scared shitless of me, after all. I think it might have been the time I walked in and cut their tower in two, before I left Snow for good.

I noticed the princess was next to a redhead and sighed. I made my way to the girl, who pulled out a kunai and stood in front of Koyuki. A ninja then? Interesting. Maybe she'd provide something of a fight? She certainly had an impressive amount of chakra. Her lines and points were also rather strange.

"Hand over Koyuki-hime and you won't have to die." I said. It wasn't like I expected her to do so, but I had to try. I didn't like having to kill cute girls, after all.

"I won't let you take the princess!" The girl declared, getting into a fighting stance.

I sighed, before I slashed the ground with the tip, the ground opening up along the path that I cut. She threw herself out of the way, pulling Koyuki with her. I wouldn't have thought any of Doto's ninja would care about the princess's wellbeing, not that I would have touched her. The line would have harmlessly passed to her side. Then again, I didn't really know what the jackass wanted her for.

The girl dropped her kunai and held out a hand, forming a sphere of spiraling chakra, before lunging at me. I almost laughed. Was she suicidal? Maybe she was just a merc that they hadn't bothered to warn?

Nevertheless, I drove my blade forward, piercing a point on the sphere. It vanished almost instantly, even as my blade pierced through her hand. To my surprise, she was still alive and conscious, but I didn't let it stop me. I drew back my other hand from the hilt, extending two fingers from my fist. It wasn't my preferred method, but there was a reason that I kept my fingernails sharp. I drove them down towards only point I could see on her back, when a silver haired man attacked me with a lightning encased fist that chirped like an unending chorus of birds.

I pulled back, throwing myself away from the girl. I was amazed to see that her wound let off a bit of steam. Some sort of healing ability? It would take quite a bit of work, power, and time to heal from a wound from Kanesada. The man stepped between me and the girl, his hands already forming seals, when we locked eyes.

Both of us shouted simultaneously, in a rather humorous fashion. "You!"

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><p>I chuckled at the girl's glare. Apparently, the silver haired man who'd saved Koyuki a decade ago, named Kakashi, was leading his team of ninja on a mission to return Koyuki to her throne. Well, originally it was to be guards of a movie set, but the client had given them the real mission in secret. The redhaired girl was named Kasumi Namikaze, and was apparently the daughter of the Hokage. His other two team members were Sasuke Uchiha, the heir of the clan, and Hinata Hyuuga, the heiress apparent of her clan. It was obviously a political thing, putting all three of them together with one of Konoha's top jonin.<p>

"Hey, what'd you do to me?" Kasumi demanded. "This stupid stab wound hasn't healed yet."

I raised an eyebrow. Even from an ordinary blade, a wound like that would take a while to heal, especially without medical treatment.

"Kasumi has a rare healing ability, and would have normally healed a wound like that in half an hour, at most." Kakashi explained, though I could tell he was concealing something. "What kind of poison do you use on your sword?"

"None. My sword's a bit special." I smirked. "Here, let me see your hand." She did so hesitatantly, placing her hand in my left. My right hand slipped to my waist, where I kept my knife. In a single, lightning-fast motion, I drew it and carved one of the new lines on her hand.

All three other ninja were angry, but Kasumi was staring at her hand, with a cute expression of wonder and confusion. I saw Kakashi flip through a hand seal, before I gestured, stopping him. "Look." I ordered, having returned the knife to my side. To their amazement, the wound was gone.

With my eyes, I can destroy even concepts and thoughts. Destroying wounds was a relatively simple matter. Though, using my eyes on this girl did worry me. Something was off about her lines and points. I wouldn't have dared try to heal anything but the most fatal wound on anywhere but on one of her extremities.

Suddenly, the boy, Sasuke, grabs my collar. "Hey, how the hell did you do that? I demand-!"

Faster than he could see, my knife is back out, poking the right side of his abdomen, making him freeze. "Did you know that, by applying the slightest amount of pressure, I can cut you in half?" I asked idly. There was something about this brat that pissed me off.

The boy laughed with false bravado. He was obviously scared, but trying to hide it. "Are you an idiot or something? There's no way-!"

I cut him off again by slicing a line on his shirt. With a slight adjustment and a tiny amount of pressure, a line was sliced through the shirt, terrifying him. He threw himself away from me. I smirked at him, making him shy away involuntarily.

"I'm grateful for what you did, both here, and ten years ago, but if you threaten my students again, we're going to have a problem." Kakashi announced, glaring at me with an expression that was half amused, half serious.

I shrugged and slid the knife back into its sheath. "If you don't want the brat to get hurt, I suggest you teach him to be less arrogant."

There was silence for a moment as I exchanged glares with the older shinobi. I knew his reputation and I could feel his killing intent. It didn't matter. I knew for a fact that I could kill him. Then again, I can kill anything, so it's not much of a surprise. Either way, no killing intent would ever affect me. I was too closely connected to death for that.

"How'd you do that? I didn't feel anything from your knife." Kasumi finally asks, breaking the tension.

"It's a little trick I know." I told her nonchalantly. "I'm afraid that it's not something anyone else could learn. Think of it like a bloodline technique, if you want."

"Oh. Well, thank you very much." Kasumi said quietly. She seemed oddly subdued. I wonder why.

* * *

><p>- Kasumi's Seal -<p>

Kasumi was surprised to find herself in the bright forest that was her mindscape. She'd wanted to thank that guy for doing whatever he did to heal her. She followed the path. No matter how much it might seem like an open forest, there was a distinct path through it. She came upon a huge hole in the ground, covered by metal bars. A seal hung in the middle, defying gravity. She glanced down. As always, it was trapped in its pit.

"What the fuck do you want, fox?" She asked.

"I suggest you show a bit more respect, human. Especially when I save your life, you stupid little bitch." The huge demon snarled. It seemed oddly tired, and there was something strange about its voice.

"What do you mean by that?" Kasumi asked, eyes wide.

"I mean that you gave that bastard a direct connection to your chakra network! Do you have any idea what kind of threat that monster is?" The fox roared. So that was the unfamiliar tone in its voice. Fear.

"What do you mean by that?" Kasumi asked again, worried.

"I mean that I had to cut off your chakra network in order to stop you from dying! He killed a portion of your chakra."

"What?" Kasumi shrieked, suddenly scared. Sure, she was a bit lower on chakra than usual after he stabbed her, and there was a second when she couldn't feel any of it, but how could someone kill chakra?

"Don't worry, mortal, he didn't damage your chakra network at all, so you'll be fine in a few hours. But don't you dare use a technique like that against a monster like him ever again!" The fox laughed mockingly, before roaring in anger.

"What are you talking about?"

"He killed the chakra in your stupid attack, and he would have killed the rest of your chakra as well if I hadn't closed off your network. Tell me, bitch, what happens to someone without chakra?"

"They die." She whispered, understanding. To maintain a Rasengan, one had to keep feeding it chakra. Basically, it had been a path to her chakra stores.

"Why do you keep calling him a monster?" She demanded, switching tracks. She felt grateful, but the fox was smart, and had a way of twisting words. She didn't want to admit it, and risk it tricking her again. Once before, it had managed to nearly get her to remove the seal. It was only her father's failsafe that prevented a tragedy. The demon's chakra played with her body and hormones enough. She didn't want to give it access to her mind as well.

"He is a far greater threat to the world than I could ever be. No demon or human could be as much of a threat to anything as he is. With a single gesture, that bastard could end the universe!" The fox roared.

"You mean he could kill you!" She realized, eyes wide. "You're scared of him."

The fox thrashed angrily, its tails wreaking havoc in its cell. "I am the Kyuubi no Kitsune! Lord of Demons! I fear nothing, especially some mortal brat!" It roared.

Kasumi smirked at the demon's reaction. "Sure you don't." She chuckled as she made to leave her mindscape. She giggled as she saw a burst of light from the cell, a sign of the demon being pissed.

* * *

><p>- Shiki<p>

"Thanks again." She said, recovering. "By the way, I never caught your name…"

"I go by Shiki. Shiki Sendo." Kakashi's eyes widened at t nhweame, and I flashed him a slight smirk. Of course a man like that would memorize the more dangerous individuals, especially those in the Bingo Book. I don't think picture of myself had ever appeared in one of the books, but the name and a general description was there, last I checked.

I didn't know my birth name, and I'd been called 'Shiki' by the nurse who'd looked after me. Sendo was my own addition. It meant 'Death', a title that was very fitting for someone with my abilities.

"Anyway, I'm going to go talk to the princess. " I turned and walked away. "I'll see you guys later."

* * *

><p>"Is- is that really you?" Koyuki asked, her eyes wide as she stared at me. We'd been childhood playmates, since Sosetsu had adopted me in all but name.<p>

I nodded. "Yeah, it's me, princess. It seems that Sandayu sent out a rumor that you would be returning to the land of snow, in an attempt to recover some of the old army. I still owe your father, and the last thing he said to me was a request to protect you."

"I… I see." She sighed. "It's good to see you again."

"Likewise." I inclined my head. "What do you want to do, princess?" I asked her. "It's rather obvious that you don't want to be here. I swore that I would protect you, and I will."

Her eyes widened. "Sandayu ordered the ninja to protect me and to help me reclaim the throne."

I closed my eyes briefly. "In other words, he ordered them to keep you here. That's a rather clever little trick. Forcing you to take the throne. He's still helping you, keeping his oath, but…" I cracked my eyes open. "I'll tell you here and now, Koyuki. There's not a single person on the planet I can't kill. If you want to leave, I can kill anyone who gets in your way. I won't let anything happen to you."

I could see that she wanted to leave. I prepared myself mentally. I was telling the truth. There weren't that many things that I hold sacred, but one of them is my word. I swore to protect and serve her, and I will. Even if that meant I had to kill those four Konoha ninja and every other person who got in our way. A shame. The redhead was really cute.

"I'd like to leave," She started, before shaking her head. "But I can't. Sandayu gave his life to try and get me my throne back. All those soldiers did too. I don't think I could live with myself if I just ran away." She blushed. "Besides, I have you to protect me now, right?"

. This is good. There is fire in the princess. Maybe she really will be worth serving. Too bad that it only took the death of her retainer to bring it out. "Of course." I replied with a nod as I returned her smile

* * *

><p>The plan, as it turned out, was rather simple. Kakashi would, with the help of his team, lure out the enemy ninja. It would be my job to shadow the princess as she was brought to Doto to 'negotiate', then kill the bastard.<p>

There was no real point in waiting, so we set out immediately, arriving at the palace the very next day. Kakashi opened by using one of his few wind jutsu to bolster two fireballs, from Kasumi and Sasuke. The assault drew out a number of guards, not to mention the ninja.

Kakashi immediately engaged the leader of the three, while Kasumi took on the girl. Sasuke and Hinata battled the other male. I took careful note of the battles as I shadowed Koyuki, hiding my presence by 'killing' any signs of my presence. The Hyuuga was actually rather skilled, though she shied away from any seriously harmful blows. The Uchiha was the opposite. It wasn't that he was unskilled, but his belief in his power far outstretched his skills. Kasumi was easily the best of the three. She used wide area wind ninjutsu that hampered her enemy's chakra, somehow, before using fire attacks to strike at them. Her taijutsu, while actually slightly below that of the Uchiha, was good enough that she was able to defeat the older ninja. Kakashi was engaged in a high-power battle with the enemy leader. It was rather interesting, but I didn't have time to waste watching.

Koyuki had just met up with the Doto's guards and requested to meet with him. The guard she talked to leapt at the chance of scoring a promotion by turning in the princess, and led her to the usurper.

"Ah, princess Koyuki. You've grown into a beautiful young woman." Doto sneered. "Tell me, why are you here? Why would you give yourself up to me, while the ninja are still fighting on your behalf?"

"I want this to end." She said, almost in tears. "I'm sick of this whole thing. I never wanted the throne! I didn't want to come here. So, I'll give you the crystal you want, and you'll let me go and stop trying to hunt me. Deal?" Damn, she really was a good actress, wasn't she?

"You know, there's really no need to make deals with you, now that you're here before me with no protection. I don't think I can afford to leave you alive. Another useless rebellion might form." He tore off his robe to reveal armor, before making handsigns.

"Hyoton! Kokuryu Bofusetsu!" He roared, a black dragon of energy exploding from his hand.

Now! I appeared in front of her, faster than most ninja, Kanesada piercing the jutsu's point. He collapsed, wheezing. I'd effectively killed his chakra reserves, since the jutsu was of the type that needed to be maintained. He would be dead in minutes, but I think that Koyuki was planning to make a stand here, not just watch him die.

"I never wanted the throne." Koyuki repeated as she stood over Doto, an angry glare on her beautiful face. "But I'll take it, if it means saving this country from a monster like you. Shiki!" She barked, and I moved up, katana in hand, waiting for the order. "Kill this bastard."

I nodded and drew the blade back. Interestingly enough, the armor's point almost overlapped with his own. My blade came down, sinking into the armor's point, causing it to break instantly. Then, my blade punched through his point, and his existence was ended. His eyes were wide with shock and fear, I noted. A fitting end, for a monster like him.

Koyuki sighed. "It's over, isn't it?" She asked me.

"The easy part, yes." I nodded. "Now, you get to deal with the tough portion: actually ruling the country."

It took a lot of willpower to not begin cackling maniacally at the look of horror on her face.

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><p><strong>Well? What do you think? I think it was okay, but I'm not sure what anyone else thinks.<strong>

**If enough people like this, I'll continue. If I do, it'll be a time skip to the VOTE battle, followed by a meeting with the Konoha council and the new Queen. What happens when a certain someone tries to control the mind of the princess? **

**Please review. I'd like to know what everyone thinks. Should I continue this story? If you want, take a look at my profile and vote on which of the story ideas you'd like to read.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Well, here's the next chapter of Death Perception. Updating is difficult, now that school's picked up again, but I'm going to try and do so at least once a month.**

**Mystic Eyes of Death Perception rant: Okay, I've gotten a couple of questions about whether Naruto will be affected like Shiki Tohno/Nanaya, so here's the response to those, as I see it.**

**Shiki Tohno's weakness came from his inability to cope with the fact that everything he sees will die. He literally sees the death of EVERYTHING he looks at. It was only because of his glasses that he avoids going insane Shiki Ryougi (from KnK) has even stronger eyes and, after adjusting (she does try to put her own eyes out at one point), is fine with it. It's probably because of Ryougi's issues, but she doesn't seem to have much of a problem with them. That might be something to do with her Origin being the Void and her being linked to Akasha, but still… Naruto's willpower (judging him by canon standards) is on a level that he would get over the problem quickly, so he does not suffer any strain, just like Ryougi, if not better. Naruto was not only in his coma for a lot longer than either protagonist. He was even clinically dead at one point. I'll get into that in a later chapter, probably two or three down the line.**

**To quote the TYPE-MOON wiki "**_Her MEoDP allows her to perceive the death of more or less anything that exists. Whether it is a person, an object, a ghost, a disease, a thought lingering in someone's mind, magecraft, a ward, a psychic attack, etc., so long as it exists, she can kill it._**" That's what it says about Ryougi's eyes, and what I'm placing the level of Naruto's eyes at.**

**Sorry you for the rant. If there're more questions, please ask.**

**Thanks to: NarutoLuver896, grimangel163, Mzr90, blackspiritfire, Tobi Fan 321, Naginator, JAKdaRIPPER, ddcj1990, dayfox96, and TigrezzTail for their reviews. For those with question reviews, thank you, and look below. **

**ZeoRangerFive: In canon, there isn't. Fanon has invented the idea of one, and I'm using it, or I couldn't have done the battle scene later this chapter.**

**GaijinSamurai: The Mystic Eyes of Death Perception are featured in two TYPE-MOON works, the Tsukihime visual novels and the Kara no Kyoukai movies. I seriously suggest looking them up, along with their Fate/ works. However, they're all M-rated. As for the pairing, I'm still thinking about it. This chapter will feature a little Naruto x Kasumi (just a kiss), but that doesn't mean a lot. It's mostly testing the waters, along with plot. I'd agree with you on the Naruto x Koyuki being unfortunately rare. I have an idea for that pairing in the works(its title, were I to write it, would be Godhand), assuming any of my current stories don't go in that direction. **

**ShadowStorm666: Take a look at the MEoDP rant above… Either way, he's powerful, but not too much so. Yes, he'd be S-ranked as a ninja, and there are some ninja on that level with insanely unfair abilities. Naruto is powerful, but not on a 'no one else stands a chance' level. Besides, he's pretty much a melee fighter. I think I'll be able to give him some decent opposition, even with the eyes as they are.**

**blakraven66: They might sound like it, and I do see a slight connection, but they're not, really. With Zero Lancer, each of his weapons was limited to one ability. Shiki's knife will be more effective against things like genjutsu and many ninjutsu, while the sword will work better on physical objects. However, both work against any kind of target. For example, against something like Itachi's Tsukiyomi, he'd use the knife, as a genjutsu on that level would require it. However, despite the non-physical status of Susanoo, Shiki would fight with Kanesada, as it would allow him to stay at a further range. I wasn't really thinking about it, but you have a point about the Origin bullets. Hmm… Maybe I should call him the Shinobi Killer as a reference to one of the most badass magi to ever live?**

**Rennerd: See the MEoDP rant above for your question about his eyes. The answer to your question about him in snow will come next chapter, but I will say that Naruto will keep his promises, no matter what.**

**Anyway, here's the second chapter. I hope you like it. Pairings are still undecided, though, as I said last chapter, I'm leaning towards Naruto x Kasumi. The fact that they kiss does not mean that they are the pairing. Let me know if you hate the idea. I know absolutely nothing about politics and diplomacy, so please don't quit out when you see the horrible example below.**

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><p>Chapter 2<p>

It's been about four months since Koyuki retook the throne. She offered Konoha a alliance in friendship, in thanks for the whole 'helping her get back her country' thing. I didn't mind at all. There was something about that Kasumi girl. Something that told me she was both interesting, and could be trusted. I wasn't sure what it was, but my instincts were usually right.

Anyway, Koyuki had finally gotten the country stabilized under her rule a couple of weeks ago, so we were heading to Konoha to set up the treaty. It was relatively smooth going. Only the strongest or stupidest bandits attacked a travelling royal. They were simply too well guarded, often by ninja.

Koyuki had been working on reestablishing Yukigakure (Village Hidden in the Snow), although she was considering changing the name, since we were now the Land of Spring. The Village was mostly intact, but Doto had assimilated those that chunin and higher that remained into his personal forces. Most of them, however, had fled the country, holding loyalty to Sosetsu. She was trying to recall as many as she could, in order to actually return it into a proper ninja village.

The other two people she had brought with her, Fubuki and Reiko, were two of the three jonin rank ninja she'd recovered. She'd left the last nin to oversee the village. Fubuki specialized in the use of rare water techniques that turned water to ice and snow that could be manipulated, similar to the old Yuki clan bloodline from Kiri, but less versatile and more chakra intensive. Without that bloodline, it was only through those techniques that ninja could use Hyoton (Ice Style). She was possibly the last recognized master of those techniques, and was the current instructor on them. She was skilled with the use of ice ninjutsu and several powerful genjutsu as well. Reiko, despite her petite stature, was a demolition specialist. She used a staff, with explosive seals on both sides that could be triggered with her chakra or on contact, as well as various fire and earth ninjutsu. Her most famous ninjutsu combined earth and fire to create a fissure, either on or under the ground, and fill it with fire, which could be released from the slightest crack in the ground. She was in the Bingo Book as the River of Fire for that reason. She was also a sensor ninja.

Of course, she had me as well. In the months since her ascension, I had become known as her shadow. It was well known that, as long as I was present, she was untouchable. Assassins were dead before they even managed to see her. Poisons failed to affect her. There was one attempt at a public assassination, where a noble who had made a great deal of money off of Doto's policies had attempted to stab her. I had impaled the man on Kanesada. It certainly frightened a number of people, especially other assassins and their possible employers.

Suddenly, Reiko froze, knocking me out of my reminiscing. "What is it, Reiko?" I asked, my fingers reaching to Kanesada. "Is someone coming?"

She shrugged, before raising a hand to point off in one direction. "Two ninja with strange chakra. Powerful and clashing." She was a woman of few words.

I processed what she said quickly. "All right." I turned to look at Koyuki. She needed to learn to deal with these situations. "How would you like to deal with this, Lady Koyuki?"

"Allow me to deal with those ninja, milady." Fubuki requested, her gauntleted fingers twitching. She was rather bloodthirsty, wasn't she?

"No, I think Shiki should deal with it." She decided. "He's the fastest of us, so he could catch up if it turns out to be nothing. If it is a threat, he can neutralize them quickly."

I nodded. It was probably the right decision, and I trusted the two here to guard her for a couple of hours. "Very well, my Queen. Be safe." I bowed my head, before racing into the trees.

* * *

><p>I came upon a valley two minutes later. There were indeed two ninja here, each standing on a tall statue. One of them was wreathed in burning orange power, while the other was some sort of demon. Kanesada slid out of its scabbard, the edge gleaming. I recognized the two ninja. Kasumi and Sasuke.<p>

"You're coming back to the village, Sasuke!" Kasumi snarled, a sphere of blood red power in her hand. "I don't like you, but you're a ninja of my village and my teammate. You're not going anywhere, especially not to Orochimaru!" I noticed a hole in her outfit, right over her chest.

"You can't stop me, Kasumi! I always knew there was something special about you, but as you can see, I'm more special than you!" He roared, his hand filled with crackling black lightning.

"You wish Sasuke." She said with a laugh.

"You know what, I think I'll bring you to Oto with me! Orochimaru would be ecstatic to start the Uchiha clan there. I don't think anyone would care if I brought you with me as a pet bitch!" I resolved to stab the asshole as soon as possible.

"I'm going to fucking slaughter you, bastard!" Kasumi roared, leaping at Sasuke, who flew towards her with his disgusting wings.

I would not let this happen. I shot forward, cleaving through a line that brought one of the statues crashing down, distracting the ninja and causing their attacks to sputter out, as I did. Before Sasuke or Kasumi could react, I pushed my blade through one of his lines. I couldn't kill the jackass, as that might hurt Koyuki's democratic efforts. So I pushed my blade through his line. I didn't cut it, as that would cleave him in half, but my blade sank easily through him, impaling him but leaving him alive. Pushing through the line neutralized any defenses or resistance his strange skin might have had, even though I wasn't cutting it. I twisted the blade in the wound, leaving a decent sized hole in him.

My eyes pulsed as I drew out Nanatsu and cut through an invisible line on his skull. He slumped over, completely out, his body changing back to normal. I had killed his conscious state, knocking him out. I suppose I could have done so from the beginning, but it had pleased me greatly to stab him.

I grabbed Kasumi to keep her from being hurt as we fell. I wasn't sure what the orange chakra was, but her lines were even further distorted. I looked down at her.

"Are you O-" She cut me off as she aggressively kissed me, shocking me.

* * *

><p>- Kasumi<p>

Kasumi was rather pissed. Sasuke had run off with those idiot sound ninja, planning to defect to Orochimaru. Now, her friends were hurt, possibly dead, and she was in the middle of a life or death fight with her teammate. She didn't really like the moron, but she couldn't let him leave.

She'd tried to reason with him, until he shoved a Chidori through her. The Kyuubi had regenerated her almost instantly, as well as pushing her into the stage 1, one-tail cloak. Then, Sasuke had transformed into some gay looking demon. As stupid as he looked, it did give him some rather drastic boosts to his physical abilities and chakra, not to mention those wings.

She'd stood atop the Shodaime, while Sasuke stood on Madara's head, both of them pumping their power into one final attack. She formed a Rasengan entirely out of demon chakra for the first time.

"You're coming back to the village, Sasuke! I don't like you, but you're a ninja of my village and my teammate. You're not going anywhere, especially not to Orochimaru!" She declared, her Rasengan enlarging slightly as she fed it even more power.

"You can't stop me, Kasumi! I always knew there was something special about you, but as you can see, I'm more special than you!" And there was that god damned arrogance again. It wasn't like her status as the Jinchuuriki was a secret or anything. Her mother and father would have slaughtered anyone who tried to treat her like containers normally were. Yeah, he knew. He was outright told! And how the hell was he special? His thief bloodline? The power he was given by Orochimaru? So, if _special_ meant having power from another source, she was pretty sure the Kyuubi beat the Uchiha and Orochimaru combined a thousand times over. She mentally shook her head to clear it.

"You wish Sasuke." Her amusement must have carried into her voice as she could hear her own laugh. He grew visibly angry.

"You know what, I think I'll bring you to Oto with me! Orochimaru would be ecstatic to start the Uchiha clan there. I don't think anyone would mind if I brought you with me as a pet bitch!" Okay, now the asshole was going to die. She enlarged the Rasengan even more. She would blow his damn head off. She could always claim it as an accident. Sure, the council would be pissed, but when were they not a hassle?

"I'm going to fucking slaughter you, bastard!" She roared. Okay, so maybe using so much chakra was a bad idea. It was fucking with her head. She'd just kill Sasuke then shut down the cloak. Maybe go have some fun first? Blowing stuff up was fun... No! Bad Kasumi!

Everything descended into a red haze as she focused on Sasuke, using the demon chakra to bolster her body and senses. They both leapt into the air, but suddenly, a sword was rammed through Sasuke, causing him to lose control of the Chidori, even as a knife cut into his head, but left no wound. Who? What?

Kasumi's breath caught in her throat as a strong arm wrapped around her waist, pulling her into a man's chest, as they both plummeted to the ground. They hit the ground with almost no effect, so she looked up slightly to see the face of that man, Shiki. Everything was still hazy to her eyes, and, for some reason, he seemed to be getting closer.

Wait a second, what was that feeling on her lips? Oh, that's right. The demonic chakra enhances her reactions, taking almost all of her actions and reactions to the extreme. So she was acting on that attraction she felt, and kissing him. Of course, all of this thinking was performed by a tiny, distant portion of her mind, while the majority of her mind was focused on enjoying the feel of his lips on hers.

That distant portion of her mind began to panic as she felt herself begin to deepen the kiss, before everything suddenly went dark.

* * *

><p>-Shiki<p>

I grabbed my knife and struck her in the back of the head, knocking her out. I would have preferred to have killed her consciousness, as it tended to have less chance of a concussion, but it would be dangerous, considering how distorted her lines were beneath that red light. I didn't want to risk killing her by cutting the wrong line. Cutting someone's head in half is generally lethal, even if they did have a powerful regenerative ability. I wasn't really sure what was going on, but this seemed rather out of character for her.

I lifted her up onto my shoulder carefully, before wrapping my other hand in Sasuke's shirt, to drag him along as well. It would have been pretty slow going, but Kakashi showed up about two minutes later.

"Sasuke! Kasumi!" He shouted, before freezing. "Shiki? What are you doing here?"

I shrugged. "Koyuki was on her way to talk to your Hokage and Council, when one of her ninja, a sensor, detected a ninja battle. She was curious, so she sent me to investigate. I found Sasuke and Kasumi about to kill one another, so I disabled them."

Kakashi frowned momentarily, before nodding and smiling. It really was amazing how well he could convey his expressions with only a fourth of his face visible. "Thanks for the help. Here, let me take Sasuke."

I lifted the male, grunting slightly. He was pretty heavy, especially when I used my off hand! I basically threw him at Kakashi, who lifted him up into the same position I'd had Kasumi in. I moved the girl into my arms, holding her bridal style. Together, Kakashi and I made our way to Konohagakure.

* * *

><p>It took us about an hour and a half to get back to the village. Kakashi led me straight to the Hokage tower, where I soon found myself meeting with Minato Namikaze himself.<p>

"So, that's your story?" The blond hokage asked me. I nodded respectfully at the living legend. I could feel his power. His chakra capacity was much larger than most jonin, and he had strange lines extending from his body in many directions, all of them linked to a new point somewhere on his chest. I figured that they must be from the Hiraishin (Flying Thunder God) technique.

"That's what I saw. You can get your daughter to confirm later."

"Very well." Minato Namikaze nodded, finishing what remained of the form. "Assuming that Kasumi confirms your story, we owe you a debt of gratitude."

I shrugged. "Would you mind telling me where the Queen is?"

He nodded. "Yes, she decided to get the beginning negotiations started with the council. Nothing can be done without myself there, of course, but…"

"I understand."

Minato nodded. "Very well. Please, follow me."

He led me through the tower, until we reached a wall covered in strange lines . He removed a small object and touched it to the wall, causing the seals to fade away. He opened the door and I followed him in.

"Ah, Lord Hokage." Koyuki said with a smile as we entered. "It's an honor to meet you."

"You as well, Queen Koyuki. Tell me, has my Council treated you well?"

I noticed something flicker across her eyes, before she spoke again.

"I am ready to begin negotiations with yourself." She said, avoiding the question entirely.

"Very well. Before you set out to meet us here in Konohagakure, we had agreed on a basic treaty with…"

I had to hold myself back from yawning. This was the part I hated the most about working for Koyuki. Politics bore me. Two hours had already passed. I was rather irritated with the way that the elders on the Council were treating the queen. They were acting as if they were doing us a favor by signing a treaty.

"Now, really." An old man with one arm and one eye covered said. "The only thing that makes sense is a full technological trade…"

"Oh really?" Koyuki said, her eye twitching once. Something told me that the man was responsible for her discomfort before we had arrived. "And you believe that you have something worth trading for our technology? Technology that is famous the world over for its power? This is a pact of friendship, not servitude."

"My dear girl," Condescending prick. "What you have to understand is that working with us is-"

I cut him off, Nanatsu cleaving through the air in front of the queen, severing a line of power that stretched towards Koyuki. With a second flowing motion, I returned the knife to my waist, unsheathed Kanesada and took a combat stance, shocking the Council.

"If you try to use that cursed chakra on my queen again," I hissed, the blade thrumming with power in my anger. "I will destroy your very existence, abomination!"

"What is the meaning of this?" Minato demanded, brandishing his famed three-pronged kunai. I prepared myself. Fighting this man would be extremely difficult. I think I could pull it off, but I might not be able to survive the exchange.

"This man was attempting to use some form of jutsu against the queen. There is something beneath the bandages on his face that emitted a dark chakra." My eyes blazed with rage. If there was one thing I hated about shinobi, it was the way they tried to warp minds with genjutsu.

"Who allowed this boy into the room?" The man, Danzo, I think was his name, demanded, trying to change the subject.

"I did, Danzo." Minato hissed. "What do you mean, abomination, boy?" He demanded of me. "I don't take lightly to those who draw weapons in this chamber."

"There is something deeply wrong with his arm." I replied. The lines were twisted, and there were ten points along it. "I've only seen something this distorted on lab experiments."

Danzo looked slightly shaken for a moment, before straightening his features. "Minato, I demand-"

"Remove the seal on your arm, Danzo." Minato ordered. "If this young man is wrong, I will demand that he apologize in full, but there is no harm in removing the coverings on your damaged arm."

I could see the man contemplating his options. Everyone was looking at him with suspicion now.

"Fine!" The man spat. With a touch, the bandages fell away, exposing three golden braces, which he removed. "Root!" He roared, as he exposed the arm, and the ten eyes mounted on it. A number of the Council members had been caught in some sort of illusion, not having expected it. Even Minato was not immune, though he quickly recovered. A team of ninja wearing masks appeared, attacking the ninja council members that were not caught in his trickery. The room seemed to grow, seals hidden in the walls causing it to grow larger to accommodate the larger number of people.

First things first. I picked up the shocked queen and made my way to the wall. A single slice of Kanesada caused it to fall away. As I expected, Reiko was already waiting, standing on the wall below. She'd been paying attention to the meeting, and had detected my chakra pulse. I carefully handed Koyuki to her.

"Go. Get her to safety." I ordered, and the stoic kunoichi nodded, vanishing in a flurry of snow crystals.

I turned back to see that Minato and Danzo were engaged in battle, the room having expanded to a rather enormous degree. I supposed that it was designed to be used if there were a number of large delegations in the room, but it was also useful to make a battleground. I was surprised to see Minato already driving his infamous Rasengan through Danzo's chest, only for the wounds to vanish a moment later.

I cursed as the man used the moment of surprise to hit the Hokage with a cutting wind jutsu that send him flying with a spray of blood. Thankfully, it seemed that the Yellow Flash had mostly avoided the attack, being hit in the arm and nicked on the side, instead of being bisected at the waist.

I threw myself forward, unwilling to let the bastard that had tried to warp my Koyuki's mind get away. Kanesada's edge gleamed with power as I slashed another wave of chakra-infused wind away.

"I'm going to kill you." I informed the man, who smirked.

"Please! You saw that even the Namikaze brat failed to harm me! My jutsu, Izanagi, allows me to turn wounds I take into nothing more than illusions! What could a brat like you do? Now you will die for spoiling my plans!"

I smirked as Nanatsu clove through a wind bullet. "Didn't anyone tell you? The name's Shiki Sendo. My reputation? It's well founded." I drove my blade through his point and smirked as he gasped. "I can kill anything." I finished, as the man fell.

His jutsu reversed any wounds he took. In all honesty, it might even have fixed him, had I cut his lines. But by piercing his point, I ended his very existence. He could no longer do anything, because the concept that was 'Danzo' was already gone. It was as if he'd never existed at all.

I turned back to see that the Root members were incapacitated. Regardless of what else people said about them, Konoha was strong. Even caught by surprise, the council members, who had probably spent years without anything more than some light training, had been able to subdue over a dozen ninja.

"Thank you for that. He got me by surprise." Minato groaned. His hand was clasped tightly around his injured arm. He'd removed a seal tag from his jacket and slapped it onto the wound on his side. "I should really get around to making a few more wound seals." He chuckled as he noticed my gaze. "Well, I guess we should get the medics in here, before we can get back to negotiations."

Wound seals, huh. That says a lot. They were called 'Paper Medics' by a lot of mercenary types, even if only a few could afford them. Just put one onto a wound, and it'll both partially heal it and put it into stasis. With enough, a person could theoretically fight though almost any wound. The problem with them was how difficult making them was. It's said that it takes a true seal master days of work to craft one. His casual mention of making them reminded me of just who this man was.

I shook my head. "No, you should rest. We can resume negotiations tomorrow, when you've all had a chance to recover. It's what the queen would want. I insist."

Minato chuckled. "All right, if you insist. But, just so you know, you'll be taking the heat from from this if she isn't happy about waiting."

* * *

><p><strong>Well, I hope you enjoyed that. I know I was stretching it a little with having the whole battle inside the council chamber. I'm trying to emphasize just how badass with seals Minato is. Konoha is going to be a lot more powerful than they were canon. Oh, and did I mention that there hasn't been an invasion? Orochimaru didn't manage to gather enough support, since Minato's much stronger than Sarutobi. <strong>

**Shiki does have a reputation that even Danzo would have heard. It'll come up later, but he is a serious badass, and a lot of people know it. Hopefully that line didn't come out as lame as I thought it did when I read it a second time.**

**Review please. What do you think? What do you want to see? Any questions? Let me know.**


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